We, superimmigrants: Is a "good" migrant an invisible one?

Is a "good" migrant an invisible one? This is a question Emilia Smechowski asks herself.

In 1988, aged five, she moved with her family from a small town in Poland to West Berlin. On arrival her name was changed to enable easier pronunciation for local German populations. Her parents instructed her to stop speaking Polish. The goal was to become as German as possible, as soon as possible.

It worked. Her family's migration story was celebrated a success. But were they happy?

As an adult, Emilia Smechowski started feeling something was missing from her life. A feeling that led her to re-discover her Polish identity and critically reflect on her experiences of migration in Germany.

While Emilia Smechwoski’s talk is a personal account of her migration to Germany, her experience is paralleled by many Polish immigrants who fled to Germany in the 80s and 90s. The talk will not only discuss aspects of identity in a migration context, applicable to migration biographies worldwide, but also provides insights into Germany history spanning from the end of WWII until today.

The talk will be held in English, but Smechowski will read German passages from her book Wir Strebermigranten. There will be time for questions and further discussion after the talk.

Emilia Smechowski is the author of Wir Strebermigranten (2017) and Rückkehr nach Polen (2019) and works as editor-in-chief of ZEITmagazin since 2020. This event is funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) through the DAAD Centre Stage Deutsch programme.